Forms, signing & PDF tools

The rest ofthe PDFtoolbox, too.

Forms that format and add up, signatures that can be checked years later, redaction that removes rather than hides, and the page tools a document goes out with.

Get ScaleSet PDF All features
G-110
Forms filled and signed, redaction that removes, Office out
SHEET G-110.1
In detail

Everything else
a PDF needs.

01 · Forms

Forms, made, filled and signed

Prepare draws fields by clicking a blank - each fits the underline under it and names itself after the words beside it - and Detect fields reads a paper form that was never made into one. Formats and calculations are written as standard PDF form scripts, so a form made here adds up in other PDF apps too.

  • FieldsText, number, date, check box, radio, list, signature
  • FillTab order, formats and totals as you type
  • DataXFDF, JSON or CSV in and out; a PDF per spreadsheet row
G-110.1
DETECT FIELDS
  1. 01Runs of underscores and dot leaders
  2. 02Drawn tick boxes, ☐ and [ ]
  3. 03Empty boxes and ruled lines with a label
  4. 04"Date of birth" becomes a date field
  5. 05"Email" checks for an email
  6. 06A row of Yes / No is one radio group
02 · Signatures

Signatures that can be checked

A Digital ID seals a PDF with an RSA-2048 key, or bring a certificate authority's .pfx. Signing appends a signature over every byte; Validate says whether anything changed since. Timestamps by RFC 3161 and long-term validation are there when you turn them on.

G-110.2
VALIDATE SIGNATURES
  1. 01The bytes it covers match its sum
  2. 02The seal matches its certificate
  3. 03The chain reaches a trusted root
  4. 04Each certificate in date when it counted
  5. 05Changed since, or only added to after
03 · Redaction

Redaction that removes

Mark an area, the drawing's own words, whole sheets, or Find & mark every name, email, phone number, ABN/ACN/TFN, card number and web address across the set. Apply takes what is under each mark out of the file and writes it whole, so nothing earlier is left to roll back to.

  • OverlayREDACTED, a reason, or an FOI exemption code
  • CleanMetadata, attachments, scripts and hidden data
  • StandardStandard /Redact marks other PDF apps read
G-110.3
Marked, reviewed, then taken out of the file
SHEET G-110.4
The toolbox

And the rest.

SCHEDULE 02Document tools
ToolWhat it does
Page marksHeaders, footers, page numbers, Bates numbers and watermarks, previewed sheet by sheet
ColoursFade, greyscale, black and white, colourise or replace colours, in the file
Edit contentErase, edit and add the drawing's own text and line work
FlattenDraw markups into the sheet, and take them back out
ProtectAES-256 passwords and permissions; protected drawings stay protected
StandardsAccessibility checks and fixes; save a PDF/A-2b or 3b copy
Convert.docx, .xlsx and .pptx, on this computer
PDF printerPrint from any CAD or design program, and it opens here
New sheetsBlank drawings at any ISO, ANSI or ARCH size, or your own
SHEET G-110.5
Questions

About the PDF tools.

Does redaction really remove the content?

Yes. Applying a redaction takes what is under each mark out of the file - text, line work, the samples of a picture - and writes the file whole, so no earlier version of it is left inside to roll back to. It can also strip metadata, attachments, scripts and hidden data.

Can I sign PDFs with a certificate?

Yes. Make a Digital ID on the machine, or import a .pfx or .p12 from a certificate authority. Signatures can be timestamped by RFC 3161 and carry long-term validation data so they can be checked years later.

Can it convert a PDF to an editable document or a spreadsheet?

Yes, on your computer. File ▸ Convert reads the page back into paragraphs, headings and tables (.docx), rows and columns with real numbers (.xlsx), or a slide a page (.pptx).

Related sheets
G-410 Security & privacy Open sheet G-108 Sheets, title blocks & issue Registers, title blocks, revisions, stamps and transmittals. Open sheet G-101 Markup & review Clouds, callouts, notes, tool sets, layers and a review workflow. Open sheet D-001 Document controllers Registers, revisions, transmittals and slip sheets. Open sheet
SHEET G-501
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